The Fifth Commandment.
Deuteronomy 5:16 (New International Version)
16 "Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land the LORD your God is giving you."
My attempt at honoring my mother and father as they age and are unable to care completely for themselves.

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Saturday, March 12, 2011

Coming home

Dad is coming home. Now we wait at the hospital for everything to finish up. Paperwork- iv’s out, heart monitor off. Mom is happy. Kind of a pain- but happy. Now we’ll see how long it will take to actually leave…

On the way to the hospital today I talked to Mom about her bathing habits. She hasn’t bathed in weeks. At least a month. No showers. She smells…old. I don’t know how else to put it.She doesn’t smell of sweat (as she told me- she doesn’t perspire!) but there is an aroma. Not too pleasing. She kept telling me sponge baths are just as good and that she has “tried” to take a shower but either she’s too tired, the water is too hot or too cold, the room is too hot or too cold, no one is around in case she falls, her TV show (NCIS) interferes, her computer email isn’t working (haven’t figured that one out yet.) or she just plain doesn’t think its needed. She wanted me to describe how she smells… Nope- ain’t doing that!

So I asked her to take a shower tonight and hope she does. The day care will bathe her…but I hate to make her do that. I think she would be humiliated. I talked to her about it while we were alone so it wouldn’t embarrass her. Now she is mad. But that’s okay.